KARMA & THE RIOTS IN FRANCE

Of course, everyone here knows what karma is:  It has nothing to do with the Christian idea of sin, but it means that every action has a consequence — in this life, in the next, or in yet another one. Of course, one has to believe in reincarnation, as Buddhists and Hindus do. Christians once believed in it too, but this was banned by Emperor Constantine during the Council of Constantinople in 553.

But it is a very important belief, because it allows us to understand that we do not live just one life before everything comes to an end and we find ourselves in heaven, purgatory, or hell, depending on our actions. In the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, we are reborn again and again, perfecting ourselves with each existence. This is the great message of the Bhagavad Gita, which, in my opinion, should become the Bible of future humanity.

There is also collective karma, the karma of a nation. The Dalai Lama himself — I have interviewed him many times and have great affection for him — has stated on several occasions that Tibet is today experiencing a "black karma," particularly because of the feudalism that existed there until the 20th century. As you may know, approximately one million Tibetans have died violently, directly or indirectly, since 1959 at the hands of the Chinese. This is considerable, because Tibet is a very small nation of around six million inhabitants, and many of them now live in exile in India.

It is therefore important to understand that a nation can have karma. If we look at Europe, for example, most European nations colonized Africa and other countries of the "Third World." My country, France, colonized a large part of North Africa — Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, etc. — often violently: populations were exploited, people were imprisoned and sometimes killed. Furthermore, in the 1950s and 1960s, we brought in cheap Arab labor because the French no longer wanted to collect garbage or do coolie-like jobs. And these workers were looked down upon when I was a child, and even ridiculed (they were called "bicots," a derogatory term for Arabs).

Thus, if today I am the great-grandson, or great-great-grandson, of one of these Arabs, or of one of these colonized North Africans, educated in France, I may feel anger toward "white" French people, an anger that can be understood: "My people were exploited, they were oppressed, people were executed." If I am uneducated, if I am a French Muslim who has not received an education, or an immigrant, this anger can quickly turn into violence. I begin to demonstrate violently against the French, against "Whites," against the police, I break and loot shops, as has been seen recently in Paris and other parts of France. I am not saying that this violence is justified, but that it can be regarded as “karmic violence”. Is France thus paying today for the karma of colonization and the exploitation of Arab populations? But, in turn, the Arabs and Muslims who violently turn against France, destroy & loot, which has nevertheless welcomed them, housed them, subsidized them, and provided them with healthcare, are themselves creating a "black karma" for their own community, which they too will have to pay for one day.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama also says that people belonging to a particular nation, or even to a particular religion, are mostly reborn in that same nation or religion. "If you are Tibetan today," he says, "there is a good chance that when you die, you will be reborn Tibetan again. If you are Muslim, it is quite possible that you will be reborn Muslim. Thus, this karma is experienced from one existence to the next."

As far as Israel is concerned, the Israeli people have suffered enormously. Not only today, after the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023 — children strangled, women raped, men tortured & killed, a form of terror among the most horrific imaginable, worthy of medieval times. But Jews have also suffered throughout history. From the 6th and 7th centuries in particular, when they were dispersed throughout the world, they became victims of pogroms in many countries. And, of course, during the Second World War, Hitler had six million of them murdered. This was one of the greatest genocides in human history.

I would also like to emphasize here that India is the only country in the world where Jews have NEVER been persecuted. They arrived there as early as the first centuries of our era, particularly in Bombay and Kerala, in Cochin. They lived there in peace and were able to practice their religion freely. A large number of them subsequently left for Israel after 1948.

What I am saying is that Israel has experienced a terrible, terrible, terrible karma. For what reason? I have absolutely no idea. There are many conjectures on this subject, but I do not wish to speculate. Let everyone form their own opinion.

The Dalai Lama, again, also states that "when you suffer, you 'burn' your karma: karma then gradually disappears." Thus, in the Buddhist and Hindu conception, there is no absolute injustice: "the people you see suffering immensely today are very probably paying the consequences of past karma."

That said, Islamic jihadism is today at war with a large part of the world, whether in Iran, Pakistan, the West, where there are often attempts to impose Sharia law upon us, or against Israel. This is where Dara Shukoh enters the picture, a Muslim prince, eldest son of the builder of the Taj Mahal, heir to the fabulous Mughal throne, who, through Sufism, engaged in dialogue with other religions: "I remain a convinced Muslim, but I accept the reality of other religious beliefs and live in peace with them."

Dara was beheaded as an apostate by his younger brother Aurangzeb, who usurped the throne. Was Dara's sacrifice in vain? No, because there are also good karmas, and the martyrdom of the prince of Sufism comes back to us today in the form of a plethora of books and biographies, including my own…

Let me conclude by saying that whereas in India there is so much violence, the Delhi ‘Cockroach’ protests are peaceful & ‘satwic’ in comparison. Long Libe Bharat !

François Gautier

Author of Dara Shukoh, Prince of Sufism, Towards a Tolerant Islam (to be published by Garuda books December 2026)